1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to adapter assemblies for use in surgical systems. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to adapter assemblies for use with electromechanical surgical devices to electrically and mechanically interconnect electromechanical surgical devices and surgical attachments, such as, for example, surgical loading units. Surgical systems including hand held electromechanical surgical devices and adapter assemblies for connecting surgical loading units to a hand held electromechanical surgical device are also described.
2. Background of Related Art
A number of surgical device manufacturers have developed product lines with proprietary drive systems for operating and/or manipulating electromechanical surgical devices. In many instances the electromechanical surgical devices include a handle assembly, which is reusable, and disposable loading units and/or single use loading units. The loading units are selectively connected to the handle assembly prior to use and then disconnected from the handle assembly following use in order to be disposed of or in some instances sterilized for re-use.
In certain instances, an adapter assembly is used to interconnect an electromechanical surgical device with any one of a number of surgical attachments, such as, for example, surgical loading units, to establish a mechanical and/or electrical connection therebetween. Presently, however, electromechanical surgical devices are limited to being connected with adapter assemblies in only one connection orientation, which limits a versatility and a comfort of use of the surgical device. For example, if a practitioner reverses an orientation of a surgical device relative to his or her hand, the actuators used to actuate the functions of the surgical attachment will also be reversed relative to the practitioner's hand, making operation of the surgical device unfamiliar to the practitioner.
Further, surgical devices often include several motors used to drive the function of different parts of a surgical attachment. Each part requires a unique amount of torque, speed and/or runtime, which leads to an inconsistent lifespan for each motor. Also, if a particular motor were to fail, a specific function of the surgical attachment driven by that motor would become non-operational.
Accordingly, a need exists for an adapter assembly that can connect to a surgical device and/or a surgical attachment in more than one connection orientation so that an electromechanical surgical system can be provided that overcomes at least the above-mentioned deficiencies of the prior art.